2026 RIA Benchmarking Study
Charles Schwab's 2026 RIA Benchmarking Study (July 2026; n=1,236, fielded Jan–Mar 2026) found that 31% vs 19% Top Performing Firms vs. all others using AI to automate time-consuming, manual workflows.
Key findings
- 01Top Performing Firms use AI to automate time-consuming, manual workflows 31% of the time versus 19% for other firms.
- 02Among firms with $250 million or more in assets under management, AI usage reached 83%, led by administrative tasks (65%) and client correspondence (49%).
- 0347% of firms use AI to draft job descriptions; 35% use it to formulate interview questions.
By the numbers
31% vs 19%Top Performing Firms vs. all others using AI to automate time-consuming, manual workflows
83%of firms with $250M+ AUM report using some form of AI
47%of firms with $250M+ AUM chose AI strategy as a top area where they want outside help
What it means for you Draft
For executives at $10–100M companies
Advisory firms look a lot like other small professional services businesses: almost everyone uses AI for admin, but top performers are more likely to automate whole workflows. For a $10–100M firm, the gap between 'drafting emails' and 'redesigning a process' seems to be where the difference shows up.
Limitations
Medium trust.Large, long-running benchmark; sample limited to Schwab-custodied RIAs; Schwab is a custodian, not an AI vendor.
The headline figure measures the “In core work” stage of adoption (running in key processes).Why adoption numbers disagree
Charles Schwab. "2026 RIA Benchmarking Study." July 2026. https://advisorservices.schwab.com/insights-hub/perspectives/ria-benchmarking-study-2026
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